The God-centered gospel

By John Roberts

Journal-Advocate religion columnist

Posted:
02/08/2018 09:51:52 PM MST

"The point I'm trying to get across to you is that we need to teach our people how to convince unbelievers that God really is for them," said the speaker. He was giving the keynote address at a one-day conference on evangelism, and he drove home his point with passion and emphasis.

All day long this gathering of church leaders had been studying the crucial need for increasing our evangelistic effectiveness. We had heard the grim statistics about the percentage of Americans who claimed to trust Christ. We had been reminded how few Christians ever invite anyone to church, let alone share the gospel with others. If we needed convincing, we had certainly been convinced of the need to be more open and assertive with the gospel, and we were ready to focus on some solutions.

John Roberts Journal-Advocate religion columnist

All was going well for me until the above statement; then that one phrase tripped me up: "God really is for them." Really? Well, in a sense this is true, because God is certainly not anti-humanity. But the Bible indicates that what God is ultimately FOR, what He is passionately and eternally committed to, is the spread of His own glory. That, indeed, is why God created everything, including humanity, in the first place.

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In fact, Scripture says that the universe and all it contains exist entirely for the glory of God. He is the center, not us. For example, Romans 11:36 reminds us, "from Him and through Him and back to Him are all things. To Him be glory forever and ever! Amen." 1 Corinthians 10:31 says, "So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." 1 Peter 4:11 tells us we should serve God, "... so that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To Him belong glory and dominion forever and ever." Habakkuk 2:14 reminds us to live and look forward to the day when, "The earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea."

Because God's glory is central to Scripture, the Westminster Shorter Catechism (a rich 17th-Century introduction to biblical Christianity) asked in its very first lesson, "What is the chief end of man?" To rephrase this question in modern terms, we might ask, "Why do human beings exist?" The answer: "Man's chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever." In other words, the main reason you and I are alive is to spend our lives on earth and in eternity giving God the glory He deserves and thus enjoying His presence.

But the conference speaker seemed to turn it around, as if we were at the center of the universe, and as if God's work in the gospel were primarily about US. That's a complete misunderstanding of the gospel. It makes the gospel people-centered, when the Bible reveals a God-centered gospel. The gospel is about God getting the glory He deserves by delivering us from our self-centered rebellion and showing us His glory in Christ. 2 Corinthians 4:6 puts it this way: "For God, who said, 'Let light shine out of darkness,' is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of His glory in the face of Christ."

What God did in sending His Son to this earth was a redemptive miracle to restore creation, so that it accurately reflects His glory, just as He created it to do. Humanity's salvation is the grand theme of the gospel, but it's not the main plot. God's glory is. The reason He saves sinners is not simply so they can have happier lives, bigger bank accounts, and kids with straighter teeth and better grades. It is, quite emphatically, not about us.

A song we sing at First Baptist, with words and music by Paul Oakley, puts it this way:

"It's all about You, Jesus; and all this is for You,

For Your glory and Your fame.

It's not about me, as if You should do things my way;

You alone are God, and I surrender to Your ways."

The God-centered gospel celebrated in this song and revealed in Scripture shows us that we exist for God, not the other way around. And that's a message — indeed, the only message — that has power to save us from ourselves, for His glory.

John Roberts is the longtime pastor of First Baptist Church in Sterling.

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